From the Editors: Passport renewal at airport in 10 minutes flat – hallmark of Dubai’s work culture

PASSPORT RENEWAL AT AIRPORT IN 10 MINUTES FLAT-HALLMARK OF DUBAI’S WORK CULTURE: When it comes to customer service and satisfaction, there are very few places on this planet that can match up to the standard that consumers are accustomed to in Dubai and the UAE. The Customer Happiness Centre of the General Directorate of Residency and Foreigners Affairs (GDRFA) – Dubai at Dubai International Airport’s Terminal 3 is a case in point. Imagine a traveller reaching all the way up to the check-in counter for an international flight, only to realise in utter shock that his or her passport has expired! While in most other cities of the world it would mean a missed flight for sure and several hours or even days of anxious wait before the travel document could be renewed, Dubai has a different way of dealing with such exigencies. The GDRFA centre at Terminal 3 is particularly equipped to handle such travel-related emergencies, whereby, an Emirati traveller can get his or her expired passport renewed in ten minutes flat! That’s ‘ease of doing business’ redefined. [COMMENT BY: Sanjib Kumar Das, Assistant Editor]

BEING CLEAR ABOUT THE PRESENT NORTH KOREAN DANGER: While global attention has been focused on the stunning developments in Afghanistan, ballistic missiles have been fired near the Korean peninsula. Japan has branded North Korea’s action as ‘outrageous’. The economy of a district inside Tokyo or Seoul is bigger than that of North Korea. But there seems to be little that the mighty economic powers of Japan and South Korea can do in the face of such blatant aggression shown by Pyongyang, other than to just condemn. This was North Korea’s second weapons test in recent days, in contravention of UN resolutions. Pyongyang has boasted its ‘strategic weapon of great significance’ can hit Japan. What do Japan and the world community plan to do about this? [COMMENT BY: Omar Shariff, International Editor]

CHAMPIONS LEAGUE: RONALDO’S STRIKE FAILS TO SAVE MAN UNITED THE BLUSHES: Cristiano Ronaldo may have wasted no time in showing how valuable he will be to Manchester United, but last night’s 2-1 shock Champions League defeat at the hands of Young Boys in Bern was a reminder that the Old Trafford side have not been a major player at this level for a long time. Ronaldo got his third goal in two matches since returning to United as the visitors took an early lead at the Wankdorf Stadium, but Aaron Wan-Bissaka’s marching orders shortly before the interval proved crucial in the Group F opener. Young Boys, the Swiss champions, made the most of their extra man as Cameroon’s Nicolas Moumi Ngamaleu got a 66th-minute equalizer and followed it up with the winner. [COMMENT BY: Gautam Bhattacharyya, Senior Associate Editor]

PLAY FAIR EVEN IN GRIEF? It’s going to be a bitter-sweet weekend for fans of Bollywood actor Sushant Singh Rajput, who was found dead at his Mumbai two years ago. His breakthrough television show ‘Pavitra Rishta’ is getting its web series reboot with a new hero today. Replacing Rajput’s iconic role of Manav is actor Saheer Sheikh in ‘Pavitra Rishta 2’, while his co-star and former girlfriend Ankita Lokhande remains a constant. In the new drama series, she returns as Archana, but Rajput isn’t around to reprise his hit character. Naturally, there was backlash as many rejected the new hero Sheikh. But nobody understand the steely resistance from the fans of the original series, better than Lokhande. “Nobody can replace Sushant,” admits Lokhande in an interview with Gulf News. She also understands the pain and disillusionment faced by Rajput’s ardent fans who are desperate for closure. But displaced anger towards the new hero is unfair, believes Lokhande. We agree. Why punish a talent for playing a role that immortalised another actor? [COMMENT BY: Manjusha Radhakrishnan, Assistant Editor – Features]